DENVER—University of Colorado President Bruce D. Benson today named Jerry Wartgow interim chancellor of the University of Colorado Denver.

Wartgow is a veteran of all levels of education in Colorado and beyond. He was superintendent of Denver Public Schools (2001-05), president of the Colorado Community Colleges System (1986-98), deputy executive director, and acting executive director of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education (1973-78).

Most recently, he was Fulbright Senior Specialist to Hong Kong, advising senior administrators at eight public universities on transitioning the higher education system from a three-year British model to a four-year American model. His complete résumé can be found here.

“Jerry Wartgow has the experience, management skills and Colorado connections to help the University of Colorado Denver address the significant challenges facing the campus, and will also help us take advantage of opportunities to move UCD forward,” Benson said.

Wartgow officially starts Aug. 3. He replaces Dr. M. Roy Wilson, who will take on new duties for CU, working more directly with national organizations in support of higher education. Benson said no decisions about a search for a permanent chancellor would be made until after the campus completes the national accreditation process, which begins late this fall and proceeds into 2011.

“I’m excited to work with the entire University of Colorado Denver community to ensure we build on our significant strengths and address our challenges,” Wartgow said. “We also need to continue to meet the needs of the metro area, the state and our partners in education.”

Benson also appointed Lilly Marks, senior associate dean for finance and administration of the University of Colorado School of Medicine and executive director of University Physicians Inc., as vice president for health affairs and executive vice chancellor at the university’s Anschutz Medical Campus. She will oversee its academic, clinical and research operations and focus on key strategic issues such as transportation, relationships with affiliate hospitals and development on and around the campus.

“Lilly Marks has had a longstanding passion for advancing the academic mission of our health programs,” Benson said. “Her skills and experience will help us deal with critical issues such as funding and the continued growth and development of our Anschutz Medical Campus.”

Marks will begin her new duties June 30. In her current position, she manages an annual budget of more than $1 billion at CU’s School of Medicine and is also executive director of University Physicians Inc., which is a national model for academic practice plans. A CU alumna, she has worked at the university since 1976. Her complete résumé is here.

“These are extremely challenging times for academic medical centers nationally as they are buffeted by declining state support, constrained research funding, and major changes resulting from health care reform,” Marks said. “I look forward to using my skills and three decades of experience at CU to help create and sustain the physical, academic and financial environment that will allow the Anschutz Medical Campus to play a leadership role in Colorado and the nation in advancing science, improving care, and training the health professionals of tomorrow.”

The University of Colorado is a premier public research university with four campuses: the University of Colorado at Boulder, the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver and the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. More than 56,000 students are pursuing academic degrees at CU. The National Science Foundation ranks CU eighth among public institutions in federal research expenditures in engineering and science. Academic prestige is marked by the university’s four Nobel laureates, seven MacArthur “genius” Fellows, 18 alumni astronauts and 19 Rhodes Scholars. For more information about the entire CU system, and to access campus resources, go to www.cu.edu[2].